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Most Helpful Databases

These databases will be most helpful for missions research. Journal articles and essays (book chapters) can be found searching these.

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Generally good places to begin your research. Provide brief to extensive overviews of topics and sometimes helpful bibliographies.

Online Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia of Religion, 2d ed. (2005) Click here to access.
The second edition of a resource that is considered a standard reference in the field. Presents a cross-cultural approach that emphasizes religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture. The original 2,750 entries have been retained, many heavily updated, and approximately 600 entirely new articles have been added by an international team of scholars and contributors.

Ref BR 95 .W67 2001
World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World.
Statistics updated in the January issues of International Bulletin of Missionary Research.

Ref BV 2040 .E92 2000
Evangelical Dictionary of World Missions. A. Scott Moreau, ed.

Ref BV 2040 .N44
Concise Dictionary of the Christian World Mission.
1971. Signed articles, includes some non-Christian missions.

Ref BV 3700 .B56 1999
Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions. 1999
Articles on 2,400 individuals from the post-New Testament period down to the present. Contains bibliographies.

Ref G 133 .L3 1993
Lands and Peoples. A brief introduction to countries, including information about the land, people, economy, and history.

Ref GN 307 .E53x
Encyclopedia of World Cultures. 1991-1995. 10 vols.

Reference Sources

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Generally good places to begin your research. Provide brief to extensive overviews of topics and sometimes helpful bibliographies.

Online Encyclopedia
Encyclopedia of Religion, 2d ed. (2005) Click here to access.
The second edition of a resource that is considered a standard reference in the field. Presents a cross-cultural approach that emphasizes religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture. The original 2,750 entries have been retained, many heavily updated, and approximately 600 entirely new articles have been added by an international team of scholars and contributors.

Ref BR 95 .W67 2001
World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World.
Statistics updated in the January issues of International Bulletin of Missionary Research.

Ref BV 2040 .E92 2000
Evangelical Dictionary of World Missions. A. Scott Moreau, ed.

Ref BV 2040 .N44
Concise Dictionary of the Christian World Mission.
1971. Signed articles, includes some non-Christian missions.

Ref BV 3700 .B56 1999
Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions. 1999
Articles on 2,400 individuals from the post-New Testament period down to the present. Contains bibliographies.

Ref G 133 .L3 1993
Lands and Peoples. A brief introduction to countries, including information about the land, people, economy, and history.

Ref GN 307 .E53x
Encyclopedia of World Cultures. 1991-1995. 10 vols.

Missions Agencies

See this very helpful list of missions agencies compiled by Beeson Divinity School.

Statistics

Ref BR 95 .W67 2001
World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World.
Statistics updated in the January issues of International Bulletin of Missionary Research.

Ref BV 2050 .D55 2004-2010
Mission Handbook: U.S./Canadian Protestant Ministries Overseas

BV2063 .M36x 2010
Operation World.
Missions related statistics and information for different countries.

Ref HA 12.5 .U63
Statistical Yearbook. 2002-2009
Profiles the UN member nations using these major headings: geography, human factors (includes ethnic division and religion), education, science and technology, government and law, labor force, production sectors, manufacturing sector, and finance, economics, trade.

Ref HA 202 .S7x 2000
Statistical Abstract of the United States.
The standard summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. Religion falls under Population.
Available online at https://www.census.gov/library/publications/time-series/statistical_abstracts.html.

The ARDA. American Religion Data Archive. Provides a wealth of data on religion, American and international.

One can search also the ATLA database using the subject headings, "statistics," "church statistics," or specify by country as, for example, "church statistics Africa."

For a wealth of background information and statistics on the countries of the world, see The World Factbook published by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. Available online at http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html.

Finding Articles

Most Helpful Databases

These databases will be most helpful for missions research. Journal articles and essays (book chapters) can be found searching these.

Other Helpful Databases

These databases may be helpful, but are not a beginning place for missions research. For a complete list of our databases, click here.

Accessing databases from off-campus

From off-campus, log-in to the databases using your TIU username and password. (This is what you use to log into your Trinity email, myTIU, and Moodle.)

If you are having trouble logging in, see the login help page.

Articles versus Essays?

Q. What's the difference between articles and essays?

A. They are in essence the same. The difference is where they are published. Articles are published in journals while essays are individually authored chapters of edited books. In ATLA they are distinguished by looking at publication type, either article or essay. For an article the source will be a journal title whereas the source for an essay will be a book title. ATLA has many full text articles, but no full text essays. You will need to search Rolfing Search or I-Share to find a copy of the book in which the essay is published.

Atla

World Religions

Streaming Ethnographic Videos

Alexander Street Press Videos

Citing Online Videos

Above the video, click on "see more details" to get information for citation. Click "embed/link" to get a permanent link to use.

TIU style - follow the Chicago Manual of Style's guidelines for online multimedia

APA - follow this example:

Aquarius Health Care Media. (Producer). (2005). ADHD: What it is, what it isn't. [Video file]. Available from http://ctiv.alexanderstreet.com/View/1779118

For the in-text citation, use the producer as the author.

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    Alexander Street Press provides the ability to link permanently to both full videos and user created clips, making it easy to point other users back to the video in a citation.
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    Create playlists of clips and videos and share them with other users. 

Zotero

Writing Helps

Style Guides and Templates

The TEDS standard for all course papers, capstones, master's theses, doctoral projects and dissertations is the TIU Style and Format Guide. The Guide provides writers specific details relative to writing a document acceptable to Trinity. Writers are advised to examine their style and formatting early in their writing process in order to avoid delays in their graduation. For style questions not covered by the TIU Style and Format Guide, consult the Turabian Quick Guide or the Chicago Manual of Style Online.

Zotero

Zotero is a free bibliographic management program that one can use with any of these three browsers: Firefox, Chrome, or Safari. It allows one to download references from Rolfing Search, WorldCat, and most of our databases, including ATLA, Academic Search Premier, and PsycIFO. After downloading references, Zotero can be used with its corresponding Microsoft Word (or Open Office counterpart) plugin to create parenthetical references/footnotes and bibliographies in many different citation styles. See our guide here for help with Zotero or click on the tab for Zotero above.

Writing a Research Paper at TEDS / TGS

See our helpful guide for tips on researching and writing an academic paper at TEDS / TGS.

Center for Theological Writing

The Center for Theological Writing of the Thrive Center (formerly the USSC) helps TEDS/TGS students with their academic and theological writing needs. You will need to schedule an appointment with a tutor. You can call the Thrive Center at (847) 317-8193 or email them at thrive@tiu.edu.